In association with the Children’s Services Development Group (CSDG), LGiU coordinated a Commissioning Task force to tackle some of the key challenges to commissioning for fostering, residential care, and special educational needs. A series of interviews with commissioners in innovative councils, and regional workshops in Manchester, York, and London contributed to the findings.

The task force took up where our previous work with CSDG, In It Together: In Practice (PDF document), left off. That report highlighted the barriers faced by commissioners seeking to improve services. This project sought to devise practical approaches to these challenges, working across three broad themes (Strategic Commissioning; Outcomes Frameworks; and Risk Management) and seeking to learn from innovative practices across the country.